


we're both so sorry

by witchy_country616



Category: From Dusk Till Dawn: The Series
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Gen, Season/Series 03 Spoilers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-11-06
Updated: 2016-11-12
Packaged: 2018-08-29 13:02:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,770
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8490802
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/witchy_country616/pseuds/witchy_country616
Summary: She walked away without looking back and he forced himself to accept it. Now they will have to work together again, old feelings will demand acknowledgment, and this partnership won't be easy or painless.aka, the season 3 we all deserved.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So...here it is the first chapter of my richie/kisa version of season 3, I hope y'all enjoy it! The title comes from Mirah's song of the same name, that majorly inspired this and I highly recommend listening to.  
> Also, there's some Kisa/Manola on this first chapter, but it's nothing explicit or long, don't worry.

_I know you didn't mean it and you're sorry that I left_  
_I'll go right on pretending I've got nothing to regret_

we’re both so sorry - mirah

 

She makes it seem so easy, to just walk away. It isn’t, though. It hurts and sometimes it feels more like failure and loneliness than freedom. But she stands behind her decision and tells herself those are all necessary steps to figuring out who she is.

She just hadn’t thought about how hard it would be to leave _him_ until it’s 3AM and she is all alone on some crappy motel room by the side of a desert Texan road. And there’s a stupid, old horror movie on tv. Her first thought is of Richard, did he ever watch this one? Did he like it? Would he ever show her that one, talking excitedly about what it meant to cinematic industry of the time while she tried to seduce him for the fun of making him loose his thought process?

Then she tells herself it doesn’t matter. _She_ doesn’t like horror movies, the monsters are always wrong and fake. Somehow, she still watches it until the end and when the credits roll around, she notices Belugi-Lugosi was on this one too before finally succumbing to sleep.

She is back on the road in San Antonio when she sees a guy that looks like him coming out of a convenience store wearing a black suit and glasses. She decides then she hates suits. Who the hell wears suits in the scorching hot summer of Texas? Because of “a job”? If you can even call being a criminal a job, that is. She wrinkles her nose in distaste before hopping on the back of her bike again. Suits are dumb and so is Richie.

It takes her another week driving through the Lone Star State before she arrives at the little town of Piedras Negras. It’s rundown and there’s not much there to see, but the _culebra_ community is big in these parts. The one thing she never thought she would miss, even more than Richie, is being around her own kind. Still, there’s always a calling to come together that she tried so hard to ignore before finding her way here.

She is supposed to only check the town out and not get involved. But the deafening screams of a woman being attacked change everything. She moves closer, wanting to see what’s going on, and is impressed by the girl. There are at least five _culebras_ attacking her, and she is such a small thing, but she keeps fighting, never giving up even though she is knows she is going to die. Santanico doesn’t think, she just acts and starts throwing punches.

When she finishes with them, the girl thanks her profusely and then asks her for her name.

“Kisa”, she answers after a beat, even if she doesn’t know when she became her. Wasn’t she always?

“You need to feed, or you’re gonna die. C’mon, my apartment is close by.” The girl states, quickly introducing herself as Manola and helping Kisa stand on her feet.

With Manola, everything is easy. She trusts her and gives herself so freely to Kisa, in a way no one did before that it’s impossible not to love her.

One day, Manola just got back from her job as a bouncer at a club, when Kisa explains her new idea to her.

“So you want to organize underground fighting?” There’s no judgment in her voice, only surprise and interest.

Kisa shrugs her shoulders. “You told me you’re a fighter before, right? And it worked on _Fight Club_.”

Manola lets out a little chuckle. “I had no idea you had even watched that movie.”

“Well, it was on tv the other day when you’re out.” She lies easily, without even knowing why. So far, she has told Manola everything about hers’ and Richie’s relationship and it seems silly to hide the fact her whole fighting club idea came from one of their movie nights. At the same time, she knows how protective Manola is of her, and she doesn’t want to have an argument because of something meaningless.

She knows now that _here_ is where she is supposed to be, with the woman she loves, her own business, no man, no owner, no Lords. If she thinks of Richie sometimes, well, it’s only to remind herself that his betrayal led them both to where they belong.

***

When she leaves, there’s a _tiny_ part of him that believes she is coming back and they will be together again. That part is mostly crushed by his more pragmatic nature that tells him they are better off apart. Santanico has to find herself and he has a business to run, one she wants nothing to do with.

But exactly because Richard is nothing if not pragmatic, he asks Lalo to keep tabs on her. It has nothing to do with him wanting ( _needing_ ) to know if she is safe. Santanico is an important piece in the chessboard and even if she doesn’t want to play anymore, he needs to know where she is, just in case. That’s what he tells Lalo, anyway. And like any good lackey, he agrees without commenting, a simple “sure, boss”. Given that Lalo is also a smart and reliable guy, he keeps his weekly reports short and to the point without volunteering details about Santanico’s journey of self-discovery that he knows Richie doesn’t want to hear about.

Interestingly enough, after the first few weeks of driving through Texas, she finally settles down. And “still in Piedras Negras, boss” has been Lalo’s succinct report over the last two months. Richie wonders sometimes what she could have found there to make her stay in one place, knows that Lalo would tell him if he asked, but he never does. It’s better to just keep wondering.

Seth is never around whenever Lalo gives his weekly reports, but Richie is under no impression that he doesn’t know. Like any good brother, Seth never mentions Santanico directly, but sometimes he gives Richard these pitying looks, as if he knows what Richie is going through.

Only he doesn’t. Because Richie is not going through _anything_ , thank you very much.

Seth is not satisfied, though. Once his patience runs out (which happens fairly quickly with his brother) and he gives up on Richie opening up to him on his own, he goes on the offensive and tries to get Richie to move on to someone else, as if that would fix everything.

“What about Katrina?” He suggests, mentioning their latest hire. “She is good looking. Her ass is not that big, but she has a nice pair of tits.” Seth adds crudely, trying to make Richie engage in their talk.

Richie doesn’t even look up from his papers on his desk. “Don’t ever fuck with the help, brother” he snaps at him, though he tries to not let Seth know how annoyed he is at the conversation. It’s not that he doesn’t have needs (he does), he has just become good at ignoring them and fucking someone just for fucking has lost its appeal in the last few months.

His brother sighs, disappointed. “Fine, none of the employees. What about that new stripper club down the road? I’ve heard they have some pretty good…”

Richie can’t help but chuckle. He supposes it’s a fair question. Back when it was only the two of them, they didn’t hesitate in spending their hard-earned money from cons and robberies on strippers and whores. It was part of their mandatory celebration. _Dying on the arms of a beautiful woman._

But that was _before_ , before _culebras_ , before the Titty Twister, before Santanico. And he already died in the arms of a beautiful woman, didn’t he? _Now_ the sad reality is that he can’t even look at a stripper pole without seeing her on it (he knows because he tried that already, Seth, he’s not a complete loser).

Unfortunately Seth heard him chuckle too, and he is once again looking at him with pity like he knows exactly what Richie is thinking, so he quickly ends the conversation. “Some of us have work to do, Seth. I can’t rush out just because you want to see some whores. The Lords have trusted me to keep this operation going.”

The mention of the Lords works as expected and Seth sighs, in his usual “I am so done with you and your Lords” fashion that only his brother is capable of. “Fine. Do things your way. Just remember I tried to help, okay? You need to move on.” He reiterates, storming off the room and leaving Richie alone to work.

After Seth leaves, Richie gets up and takes the necklace she left him out of the safe – that symbol of every single way they (he) screwed up in their relationship. There’s no use in dwelling in the past, he knows, but he still spends a good portion of the next hour looking at it, telling himself that it all worked out for the best. He puts it back on the safe once he hears Seth’s footsteps returning, before his brother finds out and he has to suffer through another of his relationship speeches.

***

And thankfully, Seth takes a break from his quest to find him a woman after that talk. That is, until the Lords die. _Now_ he wants to go after Santanico, so she can help them fight these Xibalban demons. _Now_ there are more important things than Richie’s sensitivities and Santanico is key to help them unite _culebras_ all around Texas and Mexico. _Now_ he should just stop moping around about his ex-girlfriend and _do something_.

Of course he went there and said _that_. Seth can be such a jerk sometimes (all the time, in fact).

“It’s not that…” Richie tries to object, but he knows Seth wouldn’t understand. No girlfriend of Seth ever accused him of trying to own her. None of them ever said that they had to get away so they wouldn’t feel like _property_. He is still pissed about that, but, most of all, he feels like he _owns_ it to her to leave her alone.

Seth keeps bugging him though, so he relents. It’s not like he is not right for once. They _do_ need help and maybe she could be the one to help them. She is stronger than any monster he has ever seen and they would be better off with her in their team for sure. If only Seth would shut up about their relationship this would all be much easier.

All Richie wants is pretend nothing ever happened, like it is just business as usual. But he can’t seem to, not when Seth is going on and on about _firsts_ (she wasn’t, by the way) and how it’s okay to still be hang up on her. It would have been fun to tease Seth about how he changed his opinion in relation to Santanico so quickly (wasn’t it yesterday that he hated her?), but Richie was too on edge to come up with any type of clever retort.

When he sees her for the first time, it throws him off completely for a moment. Because Santanico is _different_ , and he doesn’t mean just the color of her hair or her clothes. He doesn’t know what he expected, but she looks more in charge and comfortable in her own skin than she ever did before. A part of him is proud of what she has accomplished for herself and all on her own. The other is busy trying to understand the different dynamics around him and why she seems particularly annoyed (angry even?) at having them back in her life – even though it’s not by any of their choices.

And, if that’s not enough, there’s this tiny chick eyeing him up and down like she is prepared to fight him for her, which… _makes perfect sense_ once he connects the dots on his head. Wouldn’t she go for the complete opposite of what they were and of all that had been forced upon her?

Seth starts talking and Richie just lets him take the lead, until he is about to announce Richie and Santanico’s former relationship to the girl and Richie quickly interrupts him saying that they were partners.

And when he says they were _partners_ it’s not out of some misguided attempt to conceal what they had, it really isn’t. Somehow, _boyfriend/girlfriend_ seemed a too pedestrian description for what they were, these two people trying to take down an empire, fucking and killing their way through. So, all things considered, _partners_ fits what they had the best. When she looks up surprised and almost put out with him for saying that, he adds, _business_ partners, and doesn’t know if it helps or worsens everything.

After all, Santanico doesn’t _do business in the old ways anymore_. She turns to the girl for confirmation, and it would be funny if it weren’t his life.

“I know all about you.” The girl even manages to add before Santanico can stop her and he can’t help but narrow his eyes at her. Yeah, it’s clear that the two of them are together – he figured that out as soon as he arrived, and yet, what is _all about him_? He wants to ask what she knows. But mostly, though, he wants to analyze her inside out, figure out what is it about this Manola that Santanico likes (loves) so much.

Santanico goes on about how she is not going to help them (didn’t he tell Seth this would be pointless?) and adds, “and my name is _Kisa_.” Her name is just the cherry on top of everything fucking him up that night. He wants to ask her _since when_ but it doesn’t seem like a good idea to piss her off even more when they want her help. Plus, he always knew _Santanico Pandemonium_ wasn’t her real name. I mean, it just couldn’t be, right? It was too much of a stage name, even uncle Eddie saw through it. It just hurts that he is hearing the truth now, like it means nothing, in passing, when she never bothered to tell him when they were together. Didn’t he deserve at least that?

Seth is not giving up, though, and he should thank him for his persistency later. After all, it’s because of his ridiculous idea of picking up a fight that he gets to stand next to her on her makeshift throne and finally have a real, no bullshit conversation with her for the first time in the whole night.

And, even though a lot has changed, he takes comfort from the fact that he still knows her, can still see through whatever façade she puts on. She can change her name, but he knows that _queen_ and _goddess_ are the titles she never wanted (but so deserves), and she can build herself a new life, but he knows that _love_ (this tricky emotion she never thought she would be able to feel and reciprocate) is the only thing that could keep her from fighting for what is right. And he might not be one of her subjects nor is he the one she loves, but he sees her better than anyone else ever had and he always will.

He tells himself it’s enough and it works for about five seconds… until everything goes to shit. _Again._


	2. Chapter 2

_The kingdom is destabilized, the watchtower unmanned_  
_The bedroom lies abandoned and the future is unplanned_

 

Richie knows she blames him for what happened, for Manola dying. Some nights he still blames her for uncle Eddie, even though it was not her fault, so how could she not do the same? He had one job only, to keep her lover safe, and he failed her. Sure, he did his best, almost got killed himself in the process, but what good is it now?

He knows its’ his fault and he blames himself for what happened. And if that is not enough, he even managed to screw up his apology by mentioning freaking Kate, as if Santanico ( _Kisa_ , remember that) should care for the girl in her moment of sorrow.

Manola’s death, however, does set her mind on going with them – even if it’s because she feels like she has nothing left. And he knows he shouldn’t, but can’t help but feel (and knows that Seth does too) relieved at the thought of her fighting alongside them and having his back again.

Before they continue on their journey, they help her bury Manola’s body a couple miles out of town, in a deserted lot. She didn’t have any family, no one that would notice her gone except for the woman trying her hardest not to cry besides them, and it’s better to get rid of her body somewhere cops won’t be asking questions (they don’t need rangers chasing them down again).

Once she asks them to give her a moment alone with the body and they let her have some space, he is sure that she is going to skip town, leaving them alone to deal with that Xibalban mess – and the truth is, he would be disappointed but he wouldn’t really blame her for it. Yet, half an hour later, she is back in front of them with her backpack and asking them who is driving.

She makes no move to go back to her car (the very one where she had transported Manola’s body on the trunk) and simply falls on the backseat of theirs’, automatically closing her eyes, while Richie and Seth argue over whose turn to drive it is and what is the fastest way back to base.

Santanico, however, keeps to herself and he can count the words she said during the drive on his hand: “no” (to stopping for a break halfway) and “are we there yet?” (after the sun rose and it started to get uncomfortably bright inside their car). She was never much of a talker, but her apathy starts to worry him.

It is half past eight when they finally park in front of their base of operations outside of Houston. And even though Santanico runs to the door to get away from the sun just like him, she seems otherwise indifferent to their surroundings.

Since Ximena hadn’t arrived yet to start their reunion, they agree on meeting later and leave her alone in one of the rooms they have at the base without any word of protest from her part. Richie can’t help but frown, puzzled. He would have thought she would be itching to find not!Kate and kill her, yet after the initial anger she had shown, killing that Olmeca demon and arguing with them, she looks like she doesn’t have any fight left in her.

“Do you think she is going to be okay?” Seth asks, the expression in his face reflecting Richie’s worry.

“She will be fine,” he answers him firmly but without making eye contact, because he doesn’t want to talk to Seth about girls dancing alone and burning themselves in the sunlight and how much worse it seems to be this time.

“Fine.” Seth repeats sarcastically. “Richard, she is catatonic! There is barely a shell left. I know you’re pissed her and the girl, but…”

Richie laughs bitterly. “Do you think I care about that? Who Santanico sleeps with is her own problem, brother. If I say she is going to be fine is because in the end she always pulls through.” His words leave no room for discussion, although he knows Seth still has more he wants to say.

“You,” he turns to one of their guys who had been silently watching the bosses argue, “keep an eye on her and let us know if she tries to leave. Is that enough, Seth? Or would you like to be her nanny too?”

***

Kisa slams the door shut on both their faces and lets out a sigh of relief for finally being alone, lowering her body to the ground and sitting on the floor. She wants to break down and cry, complain to the world about the unfairness of it all, but except for a few tears when she first put Manola’s body on the trunk of the car, her eyes remain dry and she has been unable to let out all the despair she is feeling. It’s like something inside of her has closed off again and she can’t even grieve properly.

She should be out there doing something, tearing apart whoever possessed Kate’s body, limb after limb until it’s impossible to put her back together. Until she will look exactly like Kisa feels: all broken pieces that will never be put together again because Manola is not there to do it. But what’s the point? It won’t bring Manola back and it won’t make her feel any less empty.

She should know it wouldn’t last. Nothing good in her life lasts.

A while latter one of their goons knocks on the door, letting her know that Ximena has arrived, and she is still on the floor, staring far away into space. On purpose, she lingers in the room until she is half an hour late just to spite Venganza’s second in-command.  

“I don’t appreciate being watched, Richard,” are her first words to him when she arrives into the meeting, interrupting Ximena’s explanation about the legend of a Xibalban queen that could be possessing Kate (isn’t that just grand?). He shrugs his shoulders without answering her, because he knows she doesn’t like anything resembling captivity, but otherwise shows no remorse for putting a guard on her door and she wants to continue to argue with him, just so she can put into use all these mixed emotions she feels. Unfortunately, Ximena interrupts their discussion before she can get a rise out of him.

“Good for you to finally join us.” Her voice clear and cold, showing her annoyance at Kisa’s tardiness.

“And you are?” Kisa asks in her best superior tone, even though she knows exactly who she is.

“Ximena Vasconcelos, counselor to Lord Venganza.”

“I have heard about you and your Lord…” She chuckles, but it’s mean. “By any chance, do you know where she is now, your precious Lord Venganza? Or she just left you all alone with these two to clean up this mess?”

“That’s a fairly good question.” Seth says, siding with her. “Shouldn’t she be helping us?”

“That woman has already killed the other Lords. Lord Venganza went into hiding to protect herself.” Ximena answers, seeming even more annoyed with their questioning.

“Hiding where? Doesn’t she know anything that could help us defeat whoever is inside Kate’s body?” Seth keeps probing and Ximena closes her eyes, clearly uncomfortable.

“I know you’re worried about her, but this is important. We could use her knowledge, why don’t we call her?” Richie finally adds, presenting a united front, and Ximena looks at them like a deer caught in the headlights.

“You don’t know where she is either, do you?” Kisa asks, without waiting for an answer. “She left, because that’s what the Lords do. They all leave while we suffer and do their dirty work for them. Remind me, why should I help you all again?” She feels sick to her stomach, having actually for a moment considered helping them. She should be out there on her own, trying to figure out how to avenge Manola herself, not here working with some Lord’s emissary.

“Look, Santanico…” Ximena starts but she doesn’t let her finish it.

“My name is Kisa and I’m out of here. This has been a mistake.” She says, turning to go, but Richie grabs her arm before she can make her escape. His touch is gentle and she could easily get away from him if she wanted to, but for some reason she doesn’t move. She still gives him her best angry look, however, telling him she is just one breath away from losing control and reaping him to shreds.

“Wait.” He says softly and turns to Seth; silently pleading for him to come up with something that would make her stay.

“Look. Lord Venganza here or not, that thing in Kate’s body is gonna keep coming for us. It wants you dead.” Seth states, pointing towards her. “It also wants us dead. For some reason, it is set on making all _culebras_ pay. The best chance we have of surviving this shitstorm and sending her back to hell is if do this together.”

For some reason, she believes Seth’s words, even if another part of her still wants to run away. “Fine.” She relents, quickly freeing her arm from Richie’s hold and going into battle mode. “What’s the plan then?”

“We need to start looking for the next demon before it finds us.” Seth answers simply.

“No shit, Sherlock.” Richie says at the same time Ximena asks, “How would we know how to do that? We don’t even know what it really wants, except killing us.”

“I think I can help with that.” Richie answers, turning towards the maps sprawled all over the table. “There are legends that speak about a culebra demon hunter called _Ilhicamina_ , the one who shoots arrows at the sky…”

Ximena interrupts him emphatically, “he is dead.”

“Not you and your legends again, Richie. I told you it’s a waste of time. We need action, and those maps are not going to help us with that.” Seth complains, not even paying attention to what Richie has to say.

Kisa tries to analyze Richie’s maps while they discuss, but really can’t understand how the hell he got all of this information out of them. She can barely understand the ancient Xibalban language, and what she does, makes no sense. Still, she knows that he is probably right, even if Seth and Ximena are skeptical. “I think it’s worth checking it out.” She declares, and when all eyes turn towards her, she adds, “In my experience, there is always some truth in the legends. Even if that _culebra_ demon hunter doesn’t exist, there could be something useful there.”

“Fine. You two can go while me and Seth will check with the peacekeeper and see if there are any news.” Ximena orders.

“What?” Three loud voices go on at the same time and Ximena gives them her best “are you all idiots” look.

“It’s counterproductive to have everyone investigating the same thing. Now that we are four, we can split into pairs and cover more ground. Plus, the two of you are the ones that think this lead will actually be useful.” She points towards Kisa and Richie, making her argument stronger and without leaving room for discussion. “And you should leave soon if you’re planning on getting there tonight.”

***

If Richie thought it had been awkward before, nothing could compare to an hour drive alone with Sant…Kisa without Seth as a buffer. He wonders if someday he will be comfortable with her new (original?) name, but it doesn’t seem likely. He practices saying it in his head ( _Kisa_ _Kisa_ _Kisa_ , like a chant), but it never feels right, so he opts to not call her anything. In any case, “hey you” would probably work fine if they are in a pinch and need to communicate, right?

“You can put some music, if you want.” He tells her once she enters the car, not knowing what else to say to fill the uncomfortable silence between them.

“No, thanks. I’m fine.” She doesn’t even bother to look at him, fastens her seat belt and stares straight ahead, waiting for him to start the car.

You’re not fine, he wants to say, but it’s too soon to have that conversation. So he settles for a mumbled “whatever” and starts driving.

“There is nothing here, Richard.” Santanico says as soon as she gets out of the car, looking at the pitch-black empty road around them.

“It should be here…”

“Yeah, maybe your freaking maps are wrong, have you thought about that?”

He rolls his eyes and reminds himself to be nice because she is suffering. “My maps are not wrong. This is the right place, where the two rivers meet. C’mon, let’s take a look around and see if we find something.”

“Only if by something you mean a run-down convenience store…” She mumbles, making Richie look to the place in front of them.

“It’s worth checking it out.”

The store is as bad as they expected, but as soon as he enters it he can feel that they are in the right place, even if he would never admit it to Santanico. Seeing the painting hanging on the wall only reinforces his feelings, though she seems completely oblivious to it, checking out their products and looking particularly bored.

“Anything I can get you and your beautiful lady?” The man behind the counter asks after watching them cruise around the store.

“Not his lady.” Santanico firmly says before he can answer. “And I don’t think I would ever take anything from here, thanks.”

“Suit yourself, honey.” He answers, shrugging his shoulders.

Richie sighs but doesn’t bother with her comment, turning his attention back to the guy. “Hey, man, what’s with the picture?” He asks, pointing to the painting of a woman raising her hands to the sky that hangs on the wall.

“Checking out my art, I see… She is beautiful, isn’t she?” He comments before changing the subject. “Are you buying something? Lemme tell you, we have some great tequila.”

Richie shakes his head. “I’m interested in something more specific… _Ilhicamina_.”

“ _Ilhicamina_.” The guy repeats after him. “I might have heard of that, but I don’t think we carry it around here But if you’re interested, we have some free samples in the back.”

“We love free samples.” Richie says with a smile, turning to Santanico, who looks puzzled at him.

“We do?”

On the back, the guy introduces himself as Burt and immediately starts smoking, calmly asking them how they found out about him. He is very friendly, but since he doesn’t seem interested in helping them, Richie and Kisa pull their guns on him at the same time.

“I think you’re coming with us anyway, _Ilhicamina_.” She says.

“Fine, _chica_ , no need to get violent. Can I just smoke one last one?”

“Last one for the road.” Richie agrees, despite Santanico sending him her best warning stares.

And then, next thing he knows, Burt gets the drop on them and they are now tied up on the chairs. Not their finest moment, that’s for sure.

“You two are such amateurs. How have you survived this long?” Burt laughs and Richie rolls his eyes. “And you…” he continues, pointing at Santanico, “aren’t you the mistress? The one Lord Malvado made a goddess? Not much of a _diosa_ now, eh?”

Santanico hisses besides him, and Richie tries to interfere diplomatically, “C’mon, man, we just need some help on how to kill these things.”

“Boy, didn’t you hear anything? I’m retired. I quit!” He shouts at them.

“Well, I guess that’s why she said you were dead anyway.” Santanico lets slip on purpose, checking Burt’s reaction.

“Who?” Burt can’t help himself, curious.

“Ximena.”

“Ximena is working with you two? And I can see her if I go with you?” He asks and they nod, happy to agree with anything. It’s a good thing they do too, because next thing he knows Seth and Ximena are calling them about a ranch where _culebras_ are being held and stripped of their venom.

***

After dealing with Amaru’s slave master demon along with the rest of the team, Richie and Kisa are on their way back to base when he stops the car a couple of miles away from their destination, to her surprise.

“Is something wrong?”

He shakes his head. “No…I just need to talk to you without anyone else around.”

“Is this about what Burt said? That Kate’s gone and Amaru is trying to open the door to hell?”

Another head shake and Kisa can feel his embarrassment over whatever he wants to say. Richie takes a deep breath and finally says what has been on his mind since they left the fight club two nights ago. “You need to feed.”

“What?”

“Don’t think I haven’t noticed you haven’t fed since she died.”

“That’s…none of your business, Richard.” She says, turning away from him.

“That’s just great. Keep ignoring it, weaken yourself, make Amaru’s job easier when she comes for you.” His anger gets the best of him and he lets it all out at her.

“Why do you care?” She turns back to him, until they are face to face staring angrily at each other. “Huh, Richard? Afraid that if I am not there to save your asses, Amaru is going to finish you and your brother? Is that why you care?”

“You know it’s not that.”

“Isn’t it? Isn’t it why you and your brother went through the trouble of finding me in the first place?”

His voice drops and he answers sincerely, “You know that if I could, I would have left you alone.”

“Well, you should have tried harder.” She barks at him and moves to get out of the car.

“Kisa.” He didn’t mean to say it, but the name makes her stop. “I know you don’t want to be here. But I don’t want you to die. And that’s what’s going to happen if you go running around weak and without feeding. So, please, feed.” He reaches to her side and opens the glove compartment, taking out a thermic bottle and handing it to her. At her skeptical look, he adds, “It’s probably not as good as the fresh thing, but I didn’t know…” _Didn’t know if you’re ready to feed from humans again_ , he leaves it unsaid between them. “Anyway, it’s from some scumbag I caught trying to molest his date outside the bar earlier. Told you, no feeding on civilians.”

She seems surprised that he went to the trouble of procuring her food (one that would satisfy their old criteria of no innocents, no less) and finally opens the bottle. Under his watchful eyes, she drinks it all.

“This tastes awful, Richard.” She says, making a face of disgust.

“Well, next time you can procure your own food.” He answers her with a smirk and starts the car again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, I hope you enjoyed this second chapter and remember: kudos and comments make my day! ;)

**Author's Note:**

> Please let me know what you think, and remember that kudos and comments are always good motivation! I do have everything outlined and I know where I'm going with this, so hopefully it won't be long until I post the next chapter. I'm very excited for you all to read the rest ;)


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